Kill Your Heroes
by brosloth
Summary: Nico di Angelo has moved to London to escape something that happened at Camp Half-Blood. Percy Jackson is going to London to investigate recent bizarre murders. What happened to drive Nico away from Long Island? Who, or what, is behind the killings? Where is Annabeth? What does Festus have to do with all of this? And what happened to Leo? Solangelo at the start. Pernico later on.
1. Chapter 1

Kill Your Heroes

* * *

Nico di Angelo was rarely sure of anything, but watching car headlights dance across the ceiling of his bachelor apartment, he was sure he was lonely.

He rolled to the other side of his bed, feet tangling under his duvet to look at his alarm clock. 1:36. He sighed as he rolled back onto his back, stretching his arm across his eyes. Gods, he was tired. And he missed the Hades cabin. For once in his life. It'd been a year and a half since he left Camp Half-Blood, and Will.

Oh Gods. Will. Nico sighed again and closed his eyes, wishing his brain would just shut up and let him sleep. He had work at the museum tomorrow, and couldn't risk being exhausted while showing off ancient precious artifacts.

He woke up cold. A layer of sweat covered his skin, and for a moment he was reaching for his sword before he realized it was a nightmare. Gods. He was twenty years old and still had night mares about Tartarus. He sat up in bed, acknowledging he wouldn't be able to sleep and pulled himself off his bed. 5:04. Five hours before he had to get to the museum. Sighing, he checked his phone, remembering the days when monsters would appear whenever he tried to play his D.S. Since he turned nineteen, most monsters left him alone. He didn't know if they were just too scared of him now or if they forgot about him, everyone else did.

Messages and missed calls from Will filled his screen and Nico felt his guts drop. This long distance relationship thing was _not_ working for him. Even if it wasn't the time difference or ocean between them, Nico felt the original magnetism he felt for Will had lost meaning.

When they had first called themselves a couple, Nico felt nothing but utter elation. This had faded over the months as Will and Nico drifted apart. Will was busy being a camp counsellor, and Nico was busy moping, sulking, and researching.

Nico lowered his phone and looked out the window. Snow drifted softly about outside, normal for an English February.

Nico watched the snow a little longer before heading to the shower.

* * *

Percy avoided airplanes as much as he could. But it would have been tricky—very tricky—to cross the ocean to England without flying. Turbulence rocked the plane, and Percy could almost feel Zeus throwing a tantrum outside.

Percy opened the window and down at the sea beneath him, wishing more than anything to be down there in the waves than up in the clouds pissing Zeus off. Sighing, he closed his eyes as nausea washed across his guts, ignoring the cute redhead sitting next to him. She'd been checking him out on and off for the whole trip. He could feel her eyes travelling across the pale scar stretching up across his neck and onto his cheek. He might be interested in this girl, of course in a different place and time. Right now was not the place or the time.

Percy opened his eyes again and checked his phone. He could easily and safely use technology now. Ever since he turned twenty most monsters had left him alone. Most. At the triggering of this memory, his hand reached up to touch the scar running across his face. He remembered the pain and the blood and his failure and most of all he remembered Annabeth as if it all happened yesterday, not a year and a half ago.

Pushing these memories out, he unlocked his phone and scrolled through the news articles he had been following recently. Three dead found in the Thames, the reason he was going to London. Local naiads said there was something fishy going on. That was all the information could get, as the naiads were freaked out, and not just normal naiad freaking out. Something had scared them, but they hadn't bothered sharing.

Percy shut his phone off.

"Um. Nice view, huh?" The redhead asked, startling Percy from his thoughts, attempting desperately to flirt with him.

Gods, this was going to be a long flight.

* * *

_Sorry it's so slow! I'll def be uploading the next chapter very soon and the plot will pick up! _

_Stay tuned! _


	2. Chapter 2

It had been a long day. The British Museum didn't close until 8:30 on Fridays, and tonight he had had to help clean up and make sure all the ancient Greek artifacts were in the right place. He could feel exhaustion weigh heavy through his bones as he walked back to his apartment. The snow had long since stopped, and the sidewalks were covered in a thin sheet of melting snow. Yellow streetlamps glared down at Nico and he quickened his pace, his feet growing numb in his boots. He wasn't scared of the dark, usually he joked to himself that the dark was scared of him, but tonight the streets of London felt like a different kind of dark.

Nico didn't want to feel the presence when it hit him. He was only a couple blocks away from his flat when he felt it. Either it was a monster (and a big one) or a demi-god. Probably a child of the Big Three. Nico didn't want to find out which was which. A monster he could take, after all he always carried his Stygian iron sword in a poster tube slung across his back. But another demi-god? He couldn't deal with that. Not after what happened a two summers ago.

Nico brushed these thoughts from his head. No demi-god would recognize him like this. He'd grown up in the short time since he left camp. Nico kept his hair trimmed and discarded most of his skull-themed apparel. That was the old Nico. The Nico that was afraid of who he was. That was partially why he decided to move to London. That, and that the gods influence was weak here. He needed to figure out what he wanted to do, and not play ambassador between the two camps, his father, his friends, anyone.

Lost in his thoughts, Nico didn't notice a familiar person waiting next to him at the cross walk.

"Nico?"

Nico turned to see the last person he'd ever wanted to see again.

"Percy?"

* * *

Percy waited at a set of lights, anxious to get to find a hotel and finally get some rest. The plane ride was almost worse than Tartarus, with the redhead flirting with him every five minutes and Zeus making the plane feel more like a rollercoaster.

And gods it was chilly. His breath puffed in front of him and his fingers were stiff with cold.

The light changed and Percy went to start across the street when he noticed the young man standing next to him. A baggy toque covered curly black hair and he wore a dark coat and skinny jeans, but he was clearly recognizable.

"Nico?" Percy stared as the man turned to face him.

Nico had grown up, but he was just as pale, and bags still hung under his deep-set eyes. His lips were chapped from the cold and earbuds dangled from his neck.

"Percy?" Percy felt his heart leap. He hadn't seen Nico for a couple years and forgot how many feelings he had for the kid. How many mixed feelings. And Percy supposed he couldn't call Nico a kid anymore, he had to be about twenty by now.

"What are you doing here?" Nico asked, his voice cracking like he was still fourteen. The conviction and hurt in this simple sentence made Percy's heart hurt.

"Some bodies were found that matched the, uh," Percy struggled to search for the right words, "the M.O. I guess." Nico broke Percy's gaze by looking awkwardly away across the street and nodded.

"Okay. C'mon," Nico ushered Percy hurriedly across the street, "We can talk about this later, in private. Do you have a hotel booked?"

Percy was still mildly surprised at Nico's tone. He had definitely grown up since they last met. Percy shook his head. "I was planning on just crashing wherever."

"Alright. My place is only a block away, if you want to stay there."

Percy smiled, this was a new Nico. "Yeah. I think I'd like that."

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_Hey again! Sorry, another short chapter, but I've got school and stuff so idk when the next chapter is gonna be available! _

_Anyway, thanks for the really nice reviews and favs and stuff. _


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